Foreclosure question

I'm not sure I understand. I'm looking for condos right now, and alot are listed for as low as $2,000 or even less for foreclosure properties. What does this price mean? Is that the remaining balance on that property? And if so, is that the acual listing price one would pay?? I'm confused...what's the process?

Buyer beware! Foreclosure sales, or better yet, pre-foreclosure sales are something you need to do your homeowork on. Make sure that if the property is in foreclosure and you are trying to acquire it at the courthouse steps, that you thoroughly investigated any and all possibilities of liens, lis pendens and/or second or third (private) mortgages. If you want to find a bargain through foreclosures in Miami, wait until the bank takes the property back into their books and buy it once it is listed on the market. That means you are still getting one heck of a bargain, especially these days, and the property comes with clean title (most of the times).
By the way: $2,000 as a purchase price? I agree with Deborah; highly unlikely. Buyer beware!!!

I have a feeling what you are looking at is monthly rental rates. The process for foreclosures is to get listings from a Realtor you trust. The MLS has everything, from REO (real estate owned), short sales (a seller who owes more than the house is worth and thus needs lender approval), pre-foreclosure (see short sale), etc. If you have anymore questions, please fire away! Good luck.

Deborah is on the right track. The likelihood of buying any type of real estate for $2K is very slim at best. Perhaps a run-down trailer home may go for about that price. I have no idea why a property is listed for $2K, could it be a typographical error?

Thank you guys for your useful answers! I'm beginning to understand a little better. I agree...it is highly unlikely that $2000 is the actual cost for the property, but i'm wondering what that price means, because when I look for condos, the first 2 or 3 pages consist of ridiculously low prices like that. Are the sellers just trying to lure people into looking at foreclosures? hmm....

Most likely the foreclosure properties you are looking at are bankowed. And the listing price is what the bank wants for the home. IF you looking to get the best deal you would need to contact the owners before the foreclosure sale date. But most likely they owners were upside down in the properties and thats why the bank owns and and is trying to unload it. And as you can see advertizing foreclosure is the bait they are using. Hope this helps.

It is highly unlikely that you would ever be able to purchase a property for $2000. Where you might here of something along those lines has to do w/ tax sale certificates. Investors purchase tax sale certicates by paying back taxes, and the homeowner has a period of time (varies by geography) to pay the investor the tax amount he/she paid plus the interest. If such is not done, the investor could take title to the property. This is rare. Most investors purchase tax sale certificates for the interest monies earned. You can see late night TV programs that promote the purchase of homes for back taxes for very low amounts. It can be misleading.